Though you search for your enemies, you will not find them. Those who wage war against you will be as nothing at all. – Isaiah 41:12

Today’s Scripture Reading (December 13, 2013): Isaiah 41

Potential often has an elusive quality. When we are young, potential is something that we want to have. Potential speaks to our future – but only of a possible future. Potential at some point has to be realized, but potential is not always realized. Potential may lie inside of us, but we still require a strength of character to make the potential a reality.

The Babylonian empire has a long history, but in many ways it is a story of what might have been. Babylon seems to be marked with great potential, but that potential was never really achieved. The empire has risen and fallen throughout its long history, but often seems to fall just short of all that it might have been. As these words were being written by Isaiah, Babylon was once again on the rise. Judah would end up becoming a victim of the Neo-Babylonian Empire (New Babylonian Empire) under the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II. But the reign of the Neo-Babylonian Empire would really only reach it zenith during the life of Nebuchadnezzar – and then once again it would fall with its potential still unrealized.

The words of Isaiah seem to point to the end of the Babylonian Captivity. No nation up until this time had ever returned from captivity, but Isaiah’s words of encouragement seem to indicate that this would not be Judah’s fate. One day, Judah would wake up in their captivity, but their enemy, the nation that was responsible for their presence in Babylon in the first place, would have simply disappeared. The reality of the Neo-Babylonian Empire was that Nebuchadnezzar II had the strength of character that was necessary to reveal Babylon’s potential, but the two kings that would follow Nebuchadnezzar would lack that character. And the result would be that Babylon’s strength would one day simply vanish – along with all of their potential.

And Judah would return home with potential of their own. Isaiah needed to Judah to understand that God still saw potential inside of them, and they were going to receive a second chance to follow that potential. But to realize the potential they would need the strength of character to follow God (interestingly enough, it was a strength to follow God that Nebuchadnezzar displayed as he chased his own potential.)

Our potential still lies in our strength of character and our willingness to follow God. And it is never too late to realize that potential.    

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Isaiah 42

Note: The VantagePoint Community Church (Edmonton) message "The Centurion's Vision" from the Series "Christ and Culture" is now available on the VantagePoint Website. You can find it here.